Real Estate Industry Session

Before joining the Fed, he spent 10 years as the Regional Economist for the Atlanta Region at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Prior to this, Scott was an Economist with two leading economic forecasting firms where he worked as an econometrician and analyzed risks to regional, state, and metropolitan area economies. Scott also taught economics at two universities in the Philadelphia area.

Dr. Harris serves as Senior Vice President of CrossMarc Services, a family office investment management platform, real estate developer, and commercial brokerage. Prior to joining CrossMarc, Dr. Harris as the Vice President of Investment Strategy for Skanska USA Commercial Development, a leading developer of high-rise office, multifamily, and mixed-used projects in urban cores nationwide. Dr. Harris served as an advisor to the Senior Leadership Team and acts as the head of investment strategy and research coordinating all business planning, market analysis, and research initiatives. Additionally, Dr. Harris remains on the faculty of the Fordham Real Estate Institute at Fordham University after holding prior academic appointments at New York University, St. John’s University, and the University of Central Florida.

Dr. Harris holds a PhD in Finance from the University of Central Florida with a research emphasis in institutional real estate and capital markets. Dr. Harris holds the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) designation, a NAIOP Research Foundation Distinguished Fellow, a Counselor of Real Estate (CRE) and serves as the organizations’ Chair of the Economic Advisory Council, a Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM), received a gubernatorial appointment to the Florida Real Estate Appraisal Board, elected a Board Member of the AFIRE organization, and was the recipient of the 2020 Practitioner-Scholar Award from the American Real Estate Society.

Dr. Johnson has won several Red Pen Awards for outstanding service and contribution to both the Journal of Real Estate Portfolio Management and Journal of Housing Research. He is a past editor of the Journal of Real Estate Practice and Education and the Journal of Housing Research.

Dr. Johnson is an active member of the American Real Estate Society (ARES). He currently serves on the ARES Board of Directors and is a past President and former Publications Director for the society. In 2023, he was awarded the Ratcliff Award for innovative research.

Dr. Johnson served as the Associate Dean of Graduate programs in FAU’s College of Business from August of 2014 through August of 2024. While at FAU, he was a founding member of the Florida Atlantic University Real Estate Initiative.

Dr. Johnson joined Ole Miss as the Christie Kirkland Walker Chair of Real Estate and Professor of Finance in the Department of Finance last year. Prior to his academic career, Dr. Johnson had over a decade of applied experience in real estate specializing in the marketing of corporate- and lender-owned properties.

Dr. Sirmans is also the cofounder of Agentic Assets, a research-driven consulting company that applies AI technology to real estate data and investment analytics. Its flagship platform, Orbis, connects a fine-tuned research AI to an extensive database of real estate scholarship and market reports. The firm also builds bespoke AI agents that streamline portfolio analysis, due diligence, and reporting, enabling investment professionals to dedicate more time to relationship building and strategic advisory.

In 2025, Dr. Sirmans was elected to the presidential track of the American Real Estate Society (ARES), the industry's leading academic and practitioner research organization. He also currently serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Real Estate Research. Dr. Sirmans earned a PhD in Finance from the University of Florida and holds a B.S. in Finance from Florida State University.